PrePregnancy Questions

melissa1209

Alrighty...so it's been 4 years since our daughter was born. We are thinking about starting on number two early to mid 2013. Here are just a few questions that I didn't have the first time around because, well, I never had time to ask them since we weren't really "trying". 1) I want to lose 20 lbs by June (the ideal time for us to conceive). Any suggested tips for effective weight loss tips? I'm starting a weekly program for abs, arms, and back. Nothing too lengthy, but effective. I'm not a runner...never have been. But I have a large dog who I LOVE to take on long walks. Those are my starting points. I usually cook pretty healthy, nor do I drink much pop, but I'm eliminating that too. Coffee...eh, that's gonna take me a while, but I go fat free anyway so...we'll work on it! And when I say 20 lbs, I could settle for 10, but why settle when you can do better?! 20 would put me at an optimal weight for pre pregnancy...10 would be just ok. What worked for some of you? 2) If June is my optimal time to get pregnant when would you all suggest going on prenatals? And when should we ditch the BC? Sorry to be blunt, but we've been using condoms, not BC for me...I was on it originally and didn't like how it affected me. So...when is the optimum time to ditch it? April, May? Sorry, it's just been quite a while since I was pregnant, so some of these things escape me!

melissa1209

***Correction 2014!

FemShep

You should be taking prenatals now-every woman should of childbearing age should take them since folic acid is most important in the very early weeks of pregnancy. And since you're not using hormonal birth control, there's no need to stop it early. Stop using condoms when you want to get pregnant.

meganscherer

Answer to your first question drink lots of water, I am currently trying to lose some weight. I try to drink at least 5 glasses  a day and I workout twice a day, I am also doing weight watchers. For your 2nd question remember you may not conceive right away. So, if you want to be pregnant in June you may want to start trying in May.

melissa1209

Well, obviously you don't always get pregnant on the first go around, so that's why I was thinking 2 months. Sure, a great deal of people do, but it doesn't always work that way. The ideal month to conceive would be June, but if it's earlier, so be it. I'd rather have a little extra time in case I don't get pregnant right away. Hence the extra month.

Wine&Cupcakes

Despite how long it took you to conceive your daughter, it could take you up to a year or more. Plenty of women suffer from secondary infertility.

That aside, you can't start taking pre-natals too early. I would start taking them ASAP. Feel free to include a DHA pill as well (preferably non-fish oil).

As for weight loss, I lost 40-something pounds using myfitnesspal. It's helped me to keep track of my intake. I also exercise religiously, drink lots of water (even more on the days I drink lots of coffee) and try to eat as many non-processed foods as I can. Slow and steady wins the race.

Twinkie0612

My ideal month to get pregnant was August........ Of 2011.

DebateThis

Twinkie0612 said:

My ideal month to get pregnant was August........ Of 2011.

Uh huh. I was shooting for June 2007, I got a BFP in Feb 2013, lol.

ErikaLynn75

I'm not going to touch the "extra 2 months" thing... but as far as losing weight before you TTC, I would recommend Weight Watchers. It has always worked well for me to lose,on average, a pound a week and keep me on track with my diet/exercise goals. I always just signed up for the online points tracker and never bothered with meetings or anything. And they normally have a discount on the membership fee around the first of the year. 

jnnfrrose6

I also am not going near the "ideal month" comment, but I didn't see anyone recommend temping and charting.  I'd start that a couple months prior so you can start to learn your body and cycle and have the best opportunity to time sex with ovulation.

kcisthebombdotcom

What worked for me to lose weight prior to ttc is a diet rich in heathy fat, cutting out processed foods, and regular exercise.

I think if you're planning one single month to ttc you're setting yourself up for disappointment. The reality is there's only a 20% chance of that happening. An average couple takes 6-12 months to get pregnant regardless of what you heard in sex Ed in high school. Even if you conceived your first child easily its not a guarantee it will happen again--your body has changed in the five years since you conceived. I quickly got pregnant with my first and second child then ttc a third for six months with no success. My advice would be get off birth control when you're ready for a baby and start prenatal vitamins immediately.

SmileyJay

Go ahead and start the prenatals. Every woman of childbearing age should be taking a multivitamin with folic acid, all it can do it help if you do get pregnant. At a minimum, I would start them 3 months in advance so that you have built up stores - so start them now but if for some reason you won't then at least start by April 1. 

There is no secret to weight loss - eat well, eat small meals every few hours, drink plenty of water, and get some exercise. Weight loss really is over 90% what you eat, the exercise is what will target where you lose the weight and how your body looks once the weight comes off. I would recommend 20 minute winsor Pilates videos. You can watch them on youtube. Pilates is low intensity and anyone can do it, it focuses heavily on your core muscles which will really help with carrying a baby and promoting weight loss. I would do it 2-3 times a week with a brisk walk with your dog every day. Just keep at it, 6 months will make a huge difference!

With 20 lbs, you will probably drop 10 in the first 2 months and then get frustrated when each month of hard work afterwards only yields a pound or two of loss. Just keep at it and adopt it as a healthy lifestyle. Once you get pregnant, continue what you are doing especially the walking and gentle exercises. 

Good luck ttc!

SmileyJay

Oh, and bc - it depends what kind you are on. Your post makes it sound like you are only using barrier methods. If that is the case, then just stop using them in June.

If you are on the pill, there is no medical reason to stop several months in advance. I stopped 3 months prior to ttc because I wanted to see what my normal cycle was like to improve our chances of being successful quickly. I have been temping and know when I ovulate. It is not necessary for the baby's health, but is something I wanted to do.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

Wine&Cupcakes

WhoCanItBeNow said:

5 glasses daily is nowhere near enough- that's only 40 oz. You need more than that. A good rule of thumb is divide your weight in half- that is the number of ounces you should aim for daily. 

You can have coffee. It's the added stuff that is bad for you. Sugars add up very quickly. 1 t is 4 grams. You should aim for less than 18 g of added sugars daily (don't count fruits or dairy sugars). 

All women of childbearing age should be taking prenatals. They are just a multi with extra folic acid. Stop birth control when you are ready to get pregnant, especially since it's just condoms. I don't know why you think you need 2 months of unprotected sex prior to TTC.

This is true. Also, coffee is a diuretic so it will dry you out - for every cup of coffee, have an additional cup or two of water.

SmileyJay

I am just now ttc #1 so I am not sure if the answer could be different since you have had a child before.

There is no secret to effective weight loss. You can workout all day but 90% of the weight loss will come from your diet. It is simple math and calories - eat fewer calories and burn more during exercise, you will lose weight. Never go below your minimum needed for BMR . How good you feel however will come from what foods you are eating. Eat balanced meals, cut out processed foods, cut your portion sizes, and make sure you are eating something every 3-4 hours when you are awake and drinking plenty of water. Do not salt your food, you do not need extra salts that are contributing to water weight and blood pressure issues. Season with garlic and lemon instead. You should try to switch to half-caf coffee and cut it out all together down the road since you shouldn't have it during pregnancy. I switched to Rooibos Tea with honey and cream and love it just as much as coffee. Sorry this is sort of just a run on of tips, but hopefully they are helpful. 

If there was just one tip that is more important than any other, it is to plan your means. We keep a chart on our fridge to keep us on track. Make extra at dinner time to always eat leftovers for lunch if you work. Eat every 3-4 waking hours. I eat breakfast, a snack, lunch, a snack, dinner, and a lite dessert (usually yogurt). Some snack ideas are rice crackers, ants on a log, Kind cereal bars, low sugar greek yogurt, fresh veggies and low fat ranch, fruit, smoothies, etc. Just a small snack between meals will help you not to overeat and to keep your metabolism at it's highest. 

You should be on a prenatal vitamin now. Doctors recommend all women who are at a risk of becoming pregnant should be on one. If you are having sex, you could get pregnant. I take the gummy vitamins from vitafusion and they are yummy. I get a huge bottle from costco for like $10 and its about 3+ months worth. 

Start charting your bbt now to make sure you are ovulating regularly. Then you will not have to use condoms every time you have sex (wait at least 2 months to see a pattern). Read more about natural family planning. If you are ovulating regularly, I would just stop using condoms the month you want to get pregnant. It could take a few months but you never know. Good luck!

SmileyJay

Just realized I already answered this question practically the exact same way but someone else had woken it up from sleeping. Lame waste of time. I hope the info is helpful!

melissa1209

Thanks so much to those with insightful comments. I hadn't been able to get back to this. As far as not touching the "ideal month" comment; that was not intended to mean I only want to get pregnant in such and such a month. In spite of one persons comment of believing I am naive, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I am not. That comment was meant as a "Wow, that'd be great if I got pregnant in June." Not meant to be read as, "This is the only month in which I want to get pregnant, and that is the only month I shall accept." Just because something would be ideal for a person, most of us who use that word, are intelligent enough to realize that very rarely does the ideal situation ever occur. For those of you who just left it alone, I get it, and I appreciate that no rude comments needed to be made. I clarified that for you, because I certainly did not mean to offend anyone. As an update, we decided to TTC earlier. As in this month. We got a BFN this month, and that's fine. I got on prenatals, saw the doc and talked with her, and have taken some of the great suggestions given here. @WhoCanItBeNow I was reading up on coffee, and what you said was confirmed. I don't drink too much. Maybe 2 cups in the morning. I've been trying to cut back to every other day. But I wake up daily at 5ish, so I like my coffee pick me up! @mmbach You took the words right out of my mouth! Like I said above, we decided to TTC earlier, I was going to check out Fertility Friend too! Would this be your first? Hope all goes well!!!

melissa1209

@TheCraftyKoala I'm so sorry I forgot to acknowledge you! Your information was very helpful and constructive. I already do plan our meals, that's just a budgeting thing for me, but I've been more diligent about what it is that I'm cooking. If it's pasta, I'm going whole grain, I generally don't add salt to foods, so that's a given, and I make everything from scratch. I'm not a prepackaged kind of gal. So I know exactly what goes into my foods. So like I said, whole grains, lots of green and other colorful veggies, a variety of fruits, and definitely more water. I've been more aware of my water intake. Thanks again! Your time was not wasted, and I wanted to let you know!